If you watch any amount of golf on tv, you’ve probably seen the infomercials advertising the Square Strike Wedge. This wedge is designed specifically to eliminate the potential for chunked chip shots and bladed wedges, producing a consistent and reliable chipping option around the green. It sounds great of course, but is it practical, and does it belong in your bag? I think the answer here is “it depends”. This is definitely a unique looking wedge, and can be a great tool for certain golfers. Check out our full Square Strike wedge review below to see if this is a club you should add to your bag!
Square Strike Overview: What is the Square Strike Wedge?
The simplest way to describe the Square Strike is as an ultimate chipping wedge. The concept isn’t a new one, and if you’ve spent any time in a store like Golf Galaxy I’m sure you’ve seen one or two of these over the last decade. While it’s similar to a standard chipper, this one is beefed up to be the best possible chipping wedge you can find.
This club is designed to simplify your stroke and simplify chipping for anyone who struggles with doing so. The club has a very upright lie angle of 68 degrees and 45 degrees of loft, which in most iron sets will be the equivalent of a pitching wedge. The sole of this club is massive, almost closer to the width of a hybrid or a driving iron rather than a wedge; the idea here is to make it really difficult to catch this club fat. This wide sole helps the club glide easily across the turf without snagging or catching. The leading edge of the Square Strike is also designed to prevent digging or hitting the ball too thin.
Every aspect of this wedge’s design is made to create a “duff proof” club. You’re meant to use more of a putting stroke rather than a wider or more vertical swing to eliminate any possibility of inconsistency while using this club. The idea is to help the player improve their short game by leaps and bounds by reducing the probability of hitting a bad chip. Powerful concept, so how does she perform?
Performance
I had a chance to take the Square Strike to the practice area of my home course and play around with it from various different lies around the green. I didn’t really use the Square Strike outside of about 25-30 yards- I see this as a club to be used exclusively greenside. I was actually really pleasantly surprised with the results and performance, and overall the club does exactly as prescribed. Hitting 10 chips from the same spot, I actually sunk 2 of them which I was thrilled with!
It didn’t matter if I put the ball on a tight lie (dormant Bermuda this time of year), in the rough or on the fringe, the result was consistently a pretty low bump and run style chip shot. Now, that’s not to say I couldn’t get it into the air; from about 20 yards I did get the ball up a bit, but again the ball released pretty well once on the green. The club is definitely heavier than a standard wedge, but I didn’t mind the feel on contact; it produced a nice crisp tack sound.
The Square Strike excels when you have a lot of green to work with, and you can really run the ball up to the pin. With a short sided chip it takes a touch more finesse, and can be slightly less practical. That said, this is a really useful tool around the green for anyone who tends to get handsy and disconnected when chipping.
Also a quick note- this club is tournament legal, and comes with a 1-year warranty.
Looks
I’ll be honest, I don’t love the way this club looks. I know why the sole is thick, but I don’t like the way it looks. I think it looks a little bit chunky, and it looks like a one trick pony. With that said, I don’t struggle with chipping that much. If I got bad nerves when chipping, I think this would actually inspire quite a bit of confidence. It does look easy to hit, so from a high handicap perspective I think the looks are probably a huge benefit.
What We Don’t Like
Am I impressed with the performance? Definitely. I think the only thing I don’t love here is the fact that you can’t put a lot of creativity into shots with this club; it’s pretty much a one trick pony. It’s a good trick, but there is quite literally no versatility. There’s no chance of getting the ball into the air with any legitimate height for a soft landing; the whole point of the wedge is to create a low, releasing ball.
I just don’t love the fact that you can’t work the ball with this or create any sort of stopping power. You already have a limited number of clubs allowed in the bag, and I feel like you can accomplish the bump and run style chip with about 6 of them quite easily. This club is made for it and excels at it, but this is my honest take.
Who is the Square Strike For?
There are a couple types of golfers that I think would see a really big benefit from using the Square Strike wedge. The most generic bucket is the high handicap crowd; high handicappers tend to struggle a little bit more with the short game than more advanced players, and these are the players that I see duffing or skulling the ball around the green. If you’re a high handicapper, this could be a good and inexpensive buy that can give you a valuable go-to shot around the green.
Beyond the generic high handicap crowd, there are plenty of golfers out there who have a real weakness in their short game. I’ve seen some mid handicappers who are generally very good players but for whatever reason they really struggle around the greens. Anyone who tends to be armsy and not connected in the short game could benefit from using this wedge around the green. Coming in at less than $100, it’s worth a try for many players.
Final Thoughts
When I watched the commercials for this product, I thought there was no way that this had a place in anyone’s golf bags. After doing my research and trying it for myself, I do admit I was wrong in my initial thesis. This is a club that’s quite useful in the right pair of hands, and does help produce a shot that not nearly enough golfers are good at.
The Square Strike wedge isn’t a golf club that I think every golfer should have or absolutely needs. This is a club that is built for those who really struggle with their short game, and cannot find any ways to improve. This isn’t a fix all, but it can help you at least gain a bit of confidence when you’re up around the green. It also comes at a pretty affordable price point, so between this and a really nice brand new wedge, this is a more affordable option.
The biggest downside here is that there just isn’t much versatility. If you struggle with your short game, give it a try. If the Square Strike doesn’t work, check out some of our short game tips here.
